League of Souls
by Brawl499
Summary: Follow the notable souls of an ancient world as they engage in seemingly unrelated events, which will bring them together in a common fight against the Malfested threat. Will feature every LoL champ and nearly every SC character.
1. Screaming Doesn't Help

Author's Note

So, I was honestly surprised when looking through the LoL crossovers section to see that nobody (At the time I'm writing this at least) has thought up and published a LoL/SC crossover. Either way, this story will be, despite what you see in this first chapter, featuring a massive array of characters: probably almost all of the LoL champs and SC characters.

With that said, if there's somebody you're rooting for to appear, chances are your wish will be granted on more than one occasion (Especially if reviewers specifically all call for one character to appear, I might bump them up in the "Queue" so to speak). I already definitively will feature Zed and Syndra next chapter, but the rest is up to you guys (Assuming anyone even notices this story given it's the only one in the whole section, so it wouldn't be the first combination to come to mind probably…..)

Basically the format I'm going for is you will see these various, unrelated events going on between various groups of characters, and there will be times where events draw these groups of characters together into some sort of large-scale occurrence, then they split and come back together again later. Essentially a very 3-D kind of view

Another thing is that the setting, just to clarify, is in the SC universe: that means it's on Earth, and there is no League. However, in order to not strip 90% of what makes LoL lore unique, I've essentially messed with the geography of the planet: there are additional landmasses in various parts of Europe, Asia, etc. that we will get to see where places like Demacia, Noxus, Ionia, and Zaun are located. Another large reason for this is that, between Piltover and Zaun, there's more than enough room to explain things like Yi's lenses or Jinx's guns existing despite the setting.

Another thing about the various characters, especially the SC ones: Not all characters will be using the same outfits. There's a 99% chance that all the LoL champs will use their default skins, but I can guarantee that the SC characters will have their appearances taken from different games. For example, Cervantes and Nightmare will be in their SCIII incarnation, but Astaroth will use his SCIV appearance. I will make sure to describe their appearances properly, but I just wanted to clarify before confusion started. Also, the Malfested are taking a little bit of their own depiction in this: Anybody who's played SCV would know with Pyrrha Omega that one of her arms seemed similar to Nightmare's: Meaty, grotesque, and almost mutated. In this, the Malfested are still a faction of beings corrupted by Soul Edge, but unless the cursed sword takes a particular liking to you, you simply become a savage creature with the same kind of meaty mutilations as Nightmare, but with a far clunkier fighting style and more basic thought processes. For the Malfested masses, the most complex thoughts they can form are to kill non-Malfested and drag their bodies back to Malfested encampments to make more of their own from the bodies of their enemies. The person in question doesn't need to be alive, though conversions from still-alive victims usually have less nerve damage and make for better fighters than, say, the bisected upper half of a victim. I'll describe various types of Malfested in more detail later, but for now I mostly want to see peoples' opinions of them in general.

One final note: The way this is being handled is that all the LoL champs (With the obvious exception being the creatures of the Void like Vel'Koz and Kog'Maw, or "Angelic" characters like Kayle and Morgana) are all from this same place as the SC characters and, as such, certain LoL characters will have history and remarks about past events with SC characters because they're actually from this universe, not transported from the LoL universe via portal or something. So, for example, Shen and Taki may have known each other for a while, or Cervantes and Gangplank may have a disdain for each other due to past scuffles with each other out on the ocean.

Chapter 1: Screaming Doesn't Help….

_The Adrian, unknown port near Spain…._

Cervantes waited patiently and calmly as his crew pulled the ship into port. He couldn't be bothered to remember the name of it, nor to be out there overseeing the docking, as all his attention was affixed on the letter that brought him here. Laying back in his chair with his feet propped up on the desk, Cervantes opened and examined the letter one last time for any sort of tell as to who sent it.

_Dear Cervantes,_

_Meet me at your most frequented port in your homeland of Spain. I will be waiting with a proposition that I believe will satisfy both your needs, and mine._

_From,_

_The Chain Warden_

_The Chain Warden? What kind of Warden would think in their right mind that somebody like me, the infamous Dread Pirate himself, would need to seek aid from another? _Cervantes thought, mentally scoffing at the idea of needing help from somebody. He was the Captain of the Adrian for a reason: He helped _himself_, and served under no one. It was through this ruthless capability of self-independence and the ability to sustain himself while ruling his ship with an iron fist that gained him his infamy. Finding the odd seal that was placed on the letter, a black skull with a bright green flame underneath it, which seemed to almost light up the eyes in an ethereal way to be the only tell that this Chain Warden was even worth visiting, Cervantes folded up the letter. Knowing him, if he fretted over finding anything more as an identifier, he would throw the letter in the fire out of frustration. Conveniently enough, this was when a knock came on the door to his quarters.

"Who is it?" Cervantes demanded, hoping that it was something good.

"We've docked at port successfully sir. No sign of the Chain Warden th-" A crewman answered through the door, being interrupted by the sound of a chain wrapping around something quickly, almost like it was being used as a whip. Taking it as a sign that somebody had the audacity to step onto his ship without warning, Cervantes immediately stood up, grabbing his purple coat and feather-adorned hat from the wall closest to the door. He also snatched up Nirvana on his way out. Most likely, he could just shoot the poor fool without needing to get into an actual fight requiring both swords.

"And who would I have the pleasure to learn has set foot on my ship?" Cervantes demanded, looking around the deck of the Adrian. What caught his eye was also his answer: A massive being, possibly 6 or 7 feet in height, wearing what looked to be a mixture of jagged, black armor, and an equally rough black leather coat, which reached down to his feet in the back. His gloves glowed an ethereal light green at the tips, and his head was a twisted mess consisting of a black, skeletal-like face with three boney limbs connected to the top, each ending in a hook. His neck was nonexistent, instead consisting merely of an empty void enveloped in green fire, which rose up around the floating skull to give his eyes a ghastly green flair to them. In one hand was a large lantern connected to a chain, and in the other was a scythe blade, with both chains being connected to either side of his coat.

"Screaming won't do you any good, but it's _music to my ears._" The being assured, looking down at a member of Cervantes' crew whose legs the scythe end of his chain was currently wrapped around. Adding to the mystery of this being, his voice almost seemed to echo, sounding like that of something caught in the limbo between life and death.

"What is your business here, hellspawn?" Cervantes questioned, deciding that the creature's appearance was too clean and fire-based to be some form of Malfested: creatures like Nightmare took on a much meatier, more mutilated appearance than this.

"I believe you received my letter. That's why you're here, is it not?" The creature asked, his twisted jawline looking like it attempted to form a smile.

"So you're this 'Chain Warden' then." Cervantes deducted, noting that the seal on the letter bore a decent resemblance to the creature's ghostly face.

"You would be correct. However, Thresh would be a preferable name between us. I don't see your other business partners calling you the Dread Pirate, after all." Thresh explained, sounding like he had something in mind.

"And what do you mean by _other _business partners?" Cervantes asked, not remembering making a deal with Thresh at any point.

"There are few across Europe who don't know of your crazed thirst for new and stronger souls. I believe we can strike a…_deal_." Thresh explained, lifting his lantern as a trio of the ever-familiar orbs flew out of it. Circling the lantern, the souls eventually retreated back inside.

"And what would this deal be?" Cervantes questioned, his interest surprisingly piqued at this point.

"Permit me to accompany you on your travels, as well as allowing me to torture and break any captives and souls we find, and in return I will help you acquire souls to sustain your life force." Thresh reasoned, seeming applaudably well-versed in Cervantes' current condition.

"And why might I possibly need your help?" Cervantes questioned, still not quite impressed.

"Because: I deal in souls. It's my job, my purpose to exist, why I exist. I can feel the most powerful souls emanating from the world around me, and as such, I can _lead you to them_." Thresh elaborated, his point starting to come together. "Besides, the stronger a victim's soul is, the more potently it will sustain you, correct?"

"Very well. I don't expect you to serve under me, but I do expect you to not go behind my back. Welcome aboard, Thresh." Cervantes agreed, putting away Nirvana as Thresh released the crew member from his chained grasp. Both striding to meet in the center of the deck, the undead pirate and ethereal jailor locked in a pseudo-handshake to seal the agreement.

_Meanwhile, over the Howling Abyss, Freljord province, Russia…._

The commonly serene peace of the many bridges over the Howling Abyss had been broken, as both Freljordian natives and outsiders alike fought to push back their obscene attackers:

"Watch out for the bowmen in their back ranks! Shieldsmen, form a barrier behind the charge to prevent any from slipping among us!" Ashe yelled at the top of her lungs, trying to give orders as best she could over the wailing cries of both the strong winds, and the pained roars of the abominations they were fighting. The Malfested had always been a problem, but until now they had never initiated a full-on assault against the Freljord. With Tryndamere currently leading the defense on a different bridge, Ashe was left to be the one making her voice heard. Drawing back an arrow, Ashe picked out a Malfested Archer attempting to gain a perch on the side of the bridge, her icy arrow hitting the creature in the throat as it fell backwards into the abyss. Hearing the clattering of hooves behind her, Ashe was relieved to know that her two-man charge had finally arrived. So long as you used the term _man_ loosely….

"Out of the way mortals!" Hecarim roared, glaive lowered in a jousting position, with Mordekaiser half-standing on his equine half, poised and ready to leap off. Knowing to give the two champions of the Shadow Isles a wide berth, Ashe's troops scattered to the walls of the bridge as the two undead stormed in, a small group of ghostly Demacian and Noxian Shades claimed from long ago at their side. Heaving with all his strength, Hecarim proceeded to spear the first Malfested he encountered, which was outfitted in a mixture of heavy, iron armor and fur, indicative of a Freljordian Knight. Punching right through the withered and battered armor, Hecarim lifted the heavy monster in the air before flinging it off to the side, off of his blade and over the edge of the bridge. Swinging his weapon back down at a diagonal angle, Hecarim proceeded to cleave another Malfested in two as Mordekaiser leapt off his back, crushing a lightly armored one under his large mace. Righting his posture, Mordekaiser took out another lightly-armored Malfested, caving in this one's chest with a heavy kick.

The Shades rushing in forward to be a line of defense, the Undead met the Pretty-Much-Dead in a violent collision as the Malfested were cut down in droves, their vastly greater numbers being rendered pointless since their weapons went right through the Shades. Luckily for the Malfested, the Shades only lasted so long, and Karthus, whom had given the Shades to Hecarim and Mordekaiser to fight with, had only given about 20 of them. Now with a bit of breathing room, Ashe's line of Shieldsmen pushed up, all in a plot to not lose any ground once the Shades gave out. Trying to stay in a consistent formation, all of Ashe's troops had been given shields, even the archers, just in case of an arrow barrage. Letting the Shadow Isles warriors do most of the work, nobody seemed to notice as a peculiar little creature had crawled its way up onto the bridge.

About the size of a Yordle, the furry, orange little creature seemed to be dazed and confused, aimlessly walking in-between the fighting, narrowly avoiding Hecarim's hooves as the large Centaur stomped about, cutting down Malfested like weeds. Carrying what looked to be a primitive boomerang of sorts made out of bone, with one side serrated into a teeth-like shape, the furry orange Yordle just watched these giants by comparison fight, not seemingly sensing any danger by it.

"Arrow Barrage, shields up!" Ashe called out, all of her troops behind the front-most row raising their shields to face the sky. All except one, who was positioned directly in the center of their defensive line. Carrying a shield that was far more ornate and far larger than the rest, the man with the Ram-adorned shield ran forward, out of formation, and positioned himself above the small orange Yordle, shielding himself and the Yordle from the hail of arrows. Holding position, Braum kept his shield raised to the sky, holding the Yordle close with his other hand as Hecarim and Mordekaiser simply faced the arrows directly. After nearly five seconds of continuous rattling and clanging from the arrows coming down, Braum and the other Shieldsmen eventually lowered their shields and stood upright again.

"It's going to take _far more_ than that to make _me _fall." Hecarim growled, the fire within his armor flaring up as he gripped an arrow embedded in his right shoulder, snapping it in half and flicking the useless piece of wood away like it was nothing. Due to the design of his armor, Mordekaiser didn't even suffer any arrow penetrations, not like it would affect either of them much anyway. Meanwhile, Braum checked on the little Yordle he had just saved.

"You're a little big to be a Poro….do you have a name?" Braum asked, noticing something peculiar as the Yordle's fur changed on the spot to a dark brown and reddish color.

"Gnar!" the little Yordle almost cheered, this act by the large man effectively saving him and his allies from a brutal death as the Yordle had deduced who was on its side. Figuring out for itself that the Centaur and the large suit of metal armor with the mace were allied with the bald man, the Yordle startled Braum, growing in size tenfold to a massive, four-legged creature with tusks and muscles strong enough to crush a grown man.

"_**Gnar!" **_The giant creature roared, turning around and leaping into the air, over Hecarim and Mordekaiser. Landing directly on top of the Malfested's front ranks, the massive beast swung both of its arms forward, launching back two Malfested Knights and a small crowd of lesser Malfested Infantry, much of the far more flimsy Infantry getting ripped in two by the force of the swing. One of the Knights surviving, the Malfested beast clamored to its feet and tried to take a swing at the Mega-Yordle with its great-sword, only to be crushed flat under one of the Yordle's massive fists. Continuing its rampage, the raging Yordle ripped up a chunk of the bridge, hurling it into the Malfested crowd and crushing a decent amount like a set of bowling pins.

"Might as well take advantage, we can kill it after if it attacks us." Mordekaiser pointed out, heaving his mace up onto his shoulder and running up alongside the Yordle before swinging his mace from left to right, crushing a Malfested Archer trying to climb the bridge's wall for a better shot. Following suite, Hecarim also advanced to the front, opening his charge by rearing up on his hind legs and delivering a dual-hoofed kick to the chest of a Malfested Knight, caving the decayed chest-plate in. Continuing to fight their way back across the bridge, the giant Yordle and two Shadow Isles warriors cut down, crushed, and dismembered the Malfested attackers in droves until an ear-splitting roar from a Malfested Archer caused them all to fall back.

"That's not like the Malfested to retreat….." Ashe contemplated, having never seen a Malfested horde retreat: Usually they either overwhelm their target and succeed or all die trying. Shortly thereafter, a courier dressed in a fur-lined, coat-tailed dark brown jacket with a hood, a dark brown leather veil over his mouth with large-lensed tinted goggles to cover his eyes, arrived.

"M'lady, I have good and bad news from Tryndamere's forces on the next bridge over." The Courier spoke up, having been sent to deliver word to Ashe.

"Good news first." Ashe requested, putting away her bow as the Malfested showed no signs of coming back today.

"Word from the bridge is the Malfested are retreating. Your competitor Sejuani's bridge reported the same, I believe the Malfested are in full retreat." The Courier explained, secretly bracing himself for the bad news he needed to deliver.

"Very good, now the bad news." Ashe requested, wanting to get it over with.

"Tryndamere is….gone." The courier hesitantly explained.

"_What? What do you mean __**gone?**_" Ashe pressed, her mood getting considerably darker.

"The Malfested's front ranks reportedly overran him. Once they had advanced past his last-seen position they just stopped and held their ground, then a short while later they retreated. His body was nowhere to be found, so we have reason to believe that he was either taken alive or his body was simply dragged back to make more Malfested." The courier elaborated, wondering what Ashe's next move would be.

"Looks like there's a blizzard coming in…..dammit. When it clears, alert the guard that I'll be taking a small team out to look for where those Malfested went. If I'm not back in three days, appoint Braum as the temporary leader until my fate can be confirmed." Ashe instructed, only being stopped from heading back to her faction's main palace by Hecarim and Mordekaiser.

"Just remember, I only do this because if your pitiful kingdom falls, the Malfested will move onto the Shadow Isles next. I have no pity or compassion for your unimaginative lives." Hecarim reminded before trotting off, seemingly not wanting to be here.

"Don't mind him, he's simply stuck in the warrior mindset he died with. The Shadow Isles will be happy to lend its forces in the name of defense against a common enemy in the future." Mordekaiser assured, obviously quite a bit more of a diplomat than Hecarim would ever want to be. "Also, I believe your Second-In-Command has made a new friend."

Looking over to Braum as a result, Ashe saw the most peculiar sight: Braum sitting down against the wall of the bridge, a mysterious orange Yordle happily smiling up at the massive man as Braum scratched it behind the ears like a dog.

_Lose one ally, gain another I guess…._


	2. Burrowing Darkness

Chapter 2: Burrowing Darkness

_Outside Zed's personal quarters in the Temple of The Order of Shadows, Ionia, Japan_

Even this far-flung from the endless wars in Europe, the power of Soul Edge was still reaching, and surprisingly, Zed didn't like it.

_It may not abide by order and laws, but it still limits one's potential by controlling you. Great power at the cost of being a shackled puppet devoid of free thought and personal will? No such power shall be allowed in The Order of Shadows. _Was Zed's official statement on it, which silently irritated some of his students. To make matters worse, Syndra was also disgusted by the removal of free will that being endowed with Soul Edge's power gave, so she made Zed's decision even harder to argue against. Unbeknownst to them, a group of disciples had found a fragment of Soul Edge and, being dark just like the Shadows, it was masked quite well inside the temple. Almost safeguarding it in their room, the Malfested infection spread into their minds and, on this night, will finally take physical form.

Two Shadow Disciples, technically the middle rank in the clan, gathered just outside the thin paper-and-bamboo windowed doors leading into Zed's personal quarters, nobody having seen the meaty Malfested growth and sharp claws that have overtaken their left arms, their arm-blades still barely protruding from the top. Having worked its way up their entire arm, the growth even created a small mouth filled with massive, sharp teeth over their chests, complimented by their actual mouths taking a similar shape under their masks. Due to the Order of Shadows armor being Zed's uniform with the red changed to yellow for Apprentices, blue for Disciples, and orange for Masters, the two ninjas almost looked like a sick parody of Zed himself. Their eyes glowing a piercing orange color in the dark room, Zed was thankfully facing away from them, his shadow through the paper indicating he was down on his knees, meditating. Taking a slow look at each other, the two Malfested Disciples slowly nodded, reaching onto their backs to claim their razor-shurikens. Just as their hands gripped the large blades, Zed's shadow seemed to flash for a moment, followed by a pair of razor-shurikens slamming into their backs. Going right through the spinal cord, both Malfested were dead on impact.

"Insolent fools, did they not listen to what I said about Soul Edge?" Zed asked himself, having swapped places with a shadow he summoned behind his attempted assailants. He knew they were there from the second they entered, he was just toying with them by taking a while. Yanking his razor-shurikens out of the Disciples' backs, Zed placed them on his back before turning to leave, wanting to assess the status of the rest of the clan. Deciding a window down to the courtyard would be faster, Zed thankfully saw the one thing he cared about besides the Box and spreading the Shadows was still alright. Watching as another Malfested Disciple was sent careening through the air only to break its neck landing head-first on the ground, Zed tracked its trajectory down to the dark, purple-rimmed balls of energy batting Malfested ninjas around like rag dolls. Due to Apprentices lacking the razor-shurikens, two of them were forced to rush at their target with arm-blades extended, only to both be railed in the side of the stomach by a dark orb, crushing them both against a wall. A third one trying its luck, this Apprentice had a quicker death as Syndra, having nearly been actually struck by the Apprentice, swung a dark ball right up into the Malfested's chin, knocking its head right off mid-leap as the body did a weak half-backflip.

Leaping down to join his partner, Zed did so landing on the back of another Malfested Disciple, right arm-blade speared through the base of the Malfested's neck. Rising just in time to deflect a jab from a Malfested Apprentice, this one was actually taken down by a different set of razor-shurikens, belonging to an uninfected Master.

"See to it that the rest of the clan is safe and determine where the shard of Soul Edge that started this is located, I want it destroyed!" Zed ordered, the Master's shadow popping in to reclaim his shurikens before leaping off to a different part of the temple. With Syndra slamming a dark ball through the stomach of the last Malfested so hard it went right through, all fell silent in their part of the temple.

"How much of the clan do you think is infected?" Syndra asked, floating over to Zed before gently descending to the ground.

"Hopefully not much. The sooner we find the shard, the fewer bodies we'll need to dispose of." Zed answered, retracting his arm-blades. The courtyard illuminated by nothing but a few lanterns and the moonlight above them, the atmosphere was oddly calm despite the fact that they were technically under attack.

"It's a shard? I thought it was transferred by essence. Once someone comes in contact they can spread it like an aura." Syndra asked, thinking she might know where it is now.

"Almost. The way it works is if you come into contact with a shard of Soul Edge and keep it on or near you for long enough, it begins to take over. Unless you're strong-willed, the process can happen in a matter of a few days." Zed explained, having studied all he could on Soul Edge for the express purpose of counteracting it in case an event like this ever happened.

"I might know where it is then: A group of students in the Shade quarter brought in a small box one day and kept it in their room, might contain a shard of Soul Edge. I know you told me to avoid nosing into the students' business, so I never investigated further." Syndra explained, the overwhelming presence of dark energy in the temple between her own powers and the Shadows having made the box seem like a silly little trinket. Not giving a response, Zed extended his arm-blades before turning to leave for the Shade quarter, Syndra rising up off the ground again before following him. Thankfully finding the Shade quarter was the easy part, but getting past the pair of Malfested Masters that had moved to block them was a bit harder.

In addition to the mutations inflicted on the Disciples, Malfested Masters also possessed a matching mutated right arm, as well as their legs from the knee down being dark brown, bio-plated with thick armor and ending in four large, claw-pointed toes. Taking the offensive, Syndra tried to hurl a dark ball right into a Malfested Master's head, the high-end monster being able to effortlessly dodge it in a flash of black smoke. He didn't even change position, just vanished out and popped back in long enough for the ball to miss. Not having the patience for such distractions, Zed conjured a shadow behind the two Malfested, throwing his razor-shurikens as the Shadow did the same. This move being far less telegraphed, the razors were able to graze past their abdomens, knocking both Masters off-kilter as they tried to avoid it. Conjuring two more Shadows, Zed and the two Shadows all leapt in at one of the Masters, the three of them each slashing their blades across the Malfested's chest. Strangely near-unaffected, the Malfested turned and roared at Zed, raising an arm-blade to attack as Zed calmly stared back at it. Getting just within grabbing distance of Zed, the Master was just about to rail Zed through the stomach when its upper chest exploded, those three slashes having caused a time-delayed well of dark power that acted like a bomb.

"Go find the shard, you'd know where it is anyway. I'll deal with our intruders." Zed ordered, Syndra resisting the urge to try and put a dark ball through the Master's back. If its reflexes were anything like the other one, she'd probably miss and rail Zed in-between the eyes with it, which prompted her to decide against it. Taking a turn that would lead to her destination anyway in order to avoid passing by the Malfested Master, Syndra left the two ninjas to do battle as she searched for the shard. Locking eyes with the mutated monster, Zed slowly waited for the creature to make the first move, arm-blades still extended and waiting. Lunging at Zed, the Master's Malfested infection obviously dulled or outright removed its host's previous judgement skills and discipline, as its easily-spotted strike was quickly deflected by a swing of Zed's blades. About to make a retaliation strike, this was surprisingly skewed as the Master blocked Zed's swing, obviously not completely useless. Both combatants now trying to attack at the same time, this only got their blades interlocked, the two blades on Zed's left arm being interlocked with the blades on the Master's right arm and likewise with the opposite arm-blades. Bringing their masked faces in close to one another, the two ninjas shot each other death glares before Zed made a winning move.

Conjuring a shadow behind his target, Zed and his shadow both pivoted on the tips of their toes in tandem with dropping to a kneel with enough force to wrench Zed's blades free from the Master's blades. Not just being a freedom-tool, this motion turned into a spinning, open-armed blade-twirl as Zed and his shadow both slashed the Master from the front and back at the waist. Spinning the rest of the way for a full 360-degree twirl, Zed finished his spin as he rose back up with a high-kick to the Master's head, knocking the monster right off its feet and back a good 5-6'. Quickly flipping to its feet with a swift backflip, the Master was hardly deterred as Zed came in fast, delivering a high spin-kick to the Malfested's head. Landing correctly after the blow, Zed blocked an attempted strike while he was still spinning to face his assailant again by swinging his right arm-blade upwards behind him, finishing the spin with a high right-to-left slash from his left arm-blade. Ducking under the slash, the Master tried to spear both of his blades up through Zed's upper chest, being blocked as Zed took a slight step back and moved his own blades to intercept.

The two ninjas getting into a blinding fury of diagonal slashes, neither combatant hitting anything but their opponent's blade, Zed won out again by orienting his right blade in such a way that it stopped both of the Master's jabs. With the Master's right forearm in an open position, Zed speared his left arm-blade through the Master's right forearm, causing it to howl in pain. Not waiting for some cry of mercy, Zed quickly stepped to the right, the Malfested's left-arm jab barely missing his stomach as he lopped the Malfested's right forearm off. With his left blade currently occupied by the Master's severed forearm, Zed ended it by doing another heel-pivoting twirl, his right blade going high to take the Malfested's head right off.

"Even with all the Shadows have taught you, Soul Edge took too much for you to stand a chance." Zed commented to himself, scraping his blades together to shove the Malfested's forearm off before retracting them. Syndra coming back into view, the news was quite obviously good as she had a small trinket box with her, the box enveloped in a purple glow and floating in the air above her right hand.

"Found the shard, any ideas on where to destroy it?" Syndra asked, easily guessing that anywhere on the temple grounds wouldn't be a good idea.

"Take it out to the mountains and crush it under the weight of your power, that should silence its abilities. After you do that, I have a favor to ask." Zed answered, walking in close to Syndra as she descended to the floor.

"You're not staying, are you?" Syndra guessed, anticipating Zed to be planning a departure.

"I need you to take what remains of the clan and bring them to your sky-monastery, only there can we guarantee none of them will bring any more shards of Soul Edge into the clan. Make sure none of them have any shards on them, and simply keep them safe. They'll continue on with their training, and all will be well until we can ensure this won't happen twice." Zed directed, almost dodging her question.

"That doesn't answer the question of where you'll be." Syndra pointed out, not about to play dumb.

"I, on the other hand, am going to leave and see to it that as many shards of Soul Edge are destroyed as I can possibly manage. I can't guarantee my return will be quick, but I can guarantee I'll return. If it eases your concerns, the students don't need anyone but the surviving Masters to keep them in line, I hand-picked them myself for their loyalty and reliability. Once you've ensured all is well at the sky-temple, you can seek me out and join me if you wish." Zed offered, assuming he dodged a black sphere to the stomach as he and Syndra looked in a gentle hug, the action feeling a bit awkward given his heavy armor.

"Go, I'll see to it that the survivors make it. And also, I can assure you now that I'll seek you out when I'm done." Syndra promised, just before Zed, giving a silent nod, pulled away and turned to depart from the temple.

_Three days later, Sai Region, Shurima, Egypt…._

"Is all this really necessary?" Ezreal asked as he wandered through the open desert, referring to the crew of Noxian soldiers giving the ever-present threat of a sword in his back as they walked. It didn't help that their armor was a bunch of black, sharp, angular metal plates slatted over each other like some kind of demonic samurai, with pointed fingertips on their gloves and closed mouthguards in tandem with a black hood for head protection. As for armaments, they were all toting bastard swords on their belts, with some also possessing a knife strapped against the outside of their right thigh. Even with all of that, they still weren't the worst part:

"Yes, it is. Noxus knows you don't have a very fond opinion of us, and no amount of money seemed to coerce you into helping, so we went with this." Cassiopeia explained, slithering along next to him. Ezreal wasn't sure if her lacking attire was a backup plan to coerce him into working with the Noxians, or just because becoming a half-serpent caused her blood to go cold, literally. Either way, the trek was starting to seem hopeless.

"Fond opinion or not, this is a hopeless cause if I've ever seen one. Are you trying to get my help, or make me die in the sun and not look accountable?" Ezreal asked, referring to why they were out here: Rumors floating around for years about the hilt of Soul Edge somewhere here in Egypt had finally culminated in a real reason to believe they were true. The hilt grasped by the fabled Azure Knight, Nightmare was just a cheap fabrication so Soul Edge could swing itself around, the _true _hilt of the completed Soul Edge was long lost to time, locked away by who-knows-who back in who-knows-when to prevent Soul Edge from ever being fully completed. Rumor had it that the ancient Shuriman king Azir was responsible for such a task, and that the hilt was locked away somewhere here in Shurima, which led to Noxus hiring Ezreal to find it. As long as your definition of 'hire' meant holding said treasure hunter at the business end of a sword at his bedside in the early hours of the morning. The big problem Ezreal was having, was that the rumors were so scattered and inconsistent that the Noxian map-makers who charted out its possible location marked down upwards of 15 different locations within Shurima.

"If we wanted you dead, we would just lop your head off right now and say the Malfested attacked us, all we want out of you is that hilt, and then we'll let you go. Only just in case we need to do business at a later time." Cassiopeia explained, not really caring about the heat. If anything, it was comforting nowadays. While Ezreal was tempted to make a followup remark about the absurdly high number of locations it might've been at, he figured the best option right now would be to just stay quiet, go down the list, and inform the Demacians of what had transpired when he was home-free. Even if they never find it, the fact that Noxus _tried _to find it would probably raise questions with the Demacians.

"Yeah, I'm sure you of all people would _love _to do business at a later time." Ezreal muttered instead, earning him a sharp strike on the nose from Cass's left wrist. Being she had a large, golden bangle on each wrist with a gem the size of someone's eye, it actually hurt quite a bit.

"Say something like that again, and I might rethink just how useful you really are." Cassiopeia threatened, mostly doing so simply to keep Ezreal's nerves on edge despite actually agreeing with his statement. Coming to what looked to be a decrepit, still-functional village, the treasure-hunting party came to a stop at the village's edge, most of them thankful to rest under the shade of a shop awning.

"Alright…..if I had to guess, it looks like we're right about on top of one of the possible locations. I doubt any of these villagers is keeping it stashed away, so if it is here, there's probably some ancient structure buried under the sand. Anybody bring a shovel?" Ezreal asked, hoping to win out on a technicality due to a lack of shovels. Unfortunately, as every single Noxian guard demonstrated, they _did _bring shovels, and even two spares for him and Cassiopeia. "Dammit…"

About to brute-force their way into making the local villagers help, the Noxians were stopped at the sight of a large band of weapon-toting marauders at the edge of town. Stopping to get a better look, the Noxian guards drew their weapons as the marauders turned out to be a bunch of desert wanderers turned into Malfested. Most of them were dressed in sun-bleached ragged cloth with hoods and silver armor underneath, but four of them were far larger, standing a good 6'2" and veiled behind thick armor with a closed helmet. The smaller ones had rigid, messy, jagged faces that were dark green in color with soulless, solid orange eyes and mouths filled with uneven, sharp teeth. In addition to that, they all seemed to have one arm that looks like it exploded out of its armor, bits of the metal intertwined with its skin to form an armored, sharp-clawed arm, two even possessing a third eye on the back of their hand. Most of their mutation seeming to be hidden under their robes, the only other tell-tale sign beside their guttural howling was their messy, jagged, dark green razor-toed feet, some having only three toes while others still had all five. The large Knights were more mish-mash, some having their entire lower half replaced with dark green natural armor while others had a diagonally-split half of their chest covered in said bio-plating.

"Well, you've fought your way out of bad situations before, don't stand there and cower!" Cass antagonized, shoving Ezreal in the back with both hands before slithering to a position where she could hurl poison safely over the heads of her allies. Knowing he'd probably either get a knife in the leg or just more unpleasant treatment if he sat it out, Ezreal also got to a high position, using his special amulet to hurl energy bolts into the large Malfested crowd. Charging headfirst into the enemy, the Malfested met the Noxian guards head on, their scimitars and short swords doing surprisingly well against the Noxians' armor. One of the first Noxians to meet the Malfested getting speared through the stomach, things weren't off to a very pleasing start for them.

"Do you guys _usually _just run at a bad situation and try to kill it?" Ezreal called out, talking to Cass about their blunt approach to this situation as one of Cass's poison globs hit a smaller Malfested in the eye. Blinded, the disoriented monster actually swung and slashed one of its allies in the thigh, causing them to both clumsily fall over.

"Not _all _the time, but against a mindless monster like the Malfested, it's really the only thing that works!" Cass replied, Ezreal firing a larger, crescent-shaped bolt that took a Malfested's legs off at the knee.

"Think they're here for the Hilt?" Ezreal pointed out, figuring that maybe it really _was _here. Either that or the Malfested had to guess just as much as they did at where it really was.

"Being they all serve Nightmare, it's possible. I just hope-" Cass started to answer, being stopped at the sound of what seemed like subterranean rumbling. Both parties stopping their attack for a bit, the Malfested were strangely docile as they looked around, puzzled at what was causing the noise. Feeling it get louder and louder, the sound eventually culminated in what almost felt like an earthquake right below them, just before one of the massive Malfested Knights was taken out. Having been looking at the ground in front of it, the Knight's massive two-handed sword meant nothing as a purple, fang-filled mouth erupted from the ground, catching the Knight by the abdomen. Landing on top of the sands, the giant, purple creature let out a low, guttural growl as it clenched its teeth, splitting the Knight in two as its abdomen region disappeared entirely. Still trying to crawl away for dear undead-life, the Knight's upper half was thoroughly smashed under one of the creature's fist-clenched frontal limbs, the sickening crack of its bones collapsing being the last noise it ever made. Having been drawn by the dark energy of the Malfested's corrupted souls, they were like a shining beacon for Rek'Sai, who specifically targeted the monsters above all else whenever they crossed into her territory.

"Ms. Du Couteau, hide! We'll deal with the beast!" One of the Noxian soldiers yelled, knowing that since Cass was royalty, to say his head would be served on a silver platter if she came to harm while he was still breathing would be an understatement. Usually not intimidated, Cass made an exception this once due to Rek'Sai's blood-soaked, sharp fangs combined with her 13' stature and obvious ability to crush a grown man with one hand.

"You heard the man, let's hide in the village! Something with a stone floor!" Cass called out, slithering over to Ezreal before grabbing him by the collar of his jacket. Dragging him behind her since he was the key to this entire expedition, Cass forced her way into a nearby shop, sinking her fangs into the neck of the owner to quickly kill him when he tried to protest. Throwing Ezreal against the far wall before slithering over to join him, Cassiopeia stayed low, not wanting to know what the fight outside was like. Unfortunately, that's when a wounded Malfested, completely uncaring of the Noxian knife wedged in its upper back, stormed in. Having had her eyes on the floor, Cass didn't notice until the Malfested had her by the neck. Whipping the creature in the shins with her tail, Cass was able to get just a second to breathe before the monster was on her again, grabbing the top of her ornate headgear. Yanking up on it, the Malfested proved that the headgear wasn't quite tight enough as it came right off, revealing what Cassiopeia had to hide.

_**Green **__hair? _Ezreal noted, still in a bit of a physical lock-up as he tried to figure what to do. Cass's hair was actually moderately long, going as far as her upper back, the ends taking a slight point to them. Looking around for something to grab as the Malfested got both hands around Cassiopeia's neck, Ezreal quickly snatched up a roughly head-sized vase. Running at the Malfested, Ezreal slammed it into the back of the monster's head, disrupting its fragile, barely functioning nerves and causing it to let the half-snake go. Wrenching the knife from the Malfested's back, Ezreal planted it in the Malfested's shoulder before kicking said Malfested in the stomach as hard as he could. Not really having thought past this point as the Malfested slammed back-first into the wall, Ezreal raised his amulet-possessing arm in a panic, firing a crescent-shaped bolt of energy which split the Malfested in two at the waist. Looking around for Cass's helmet, Ezreal saw that it was gone, the Malfested having tossed it to who-knows-where.

"You just….saved my life. Or were you just saving yours since it would've attacked you next?" Cassiopeia accused, trying to believe Ezreal wasn't on her side.

"No, I was saving yours. If I was only looking out for me, I would've ran." Ezreal explained, kneeling by Cassiopeia. Unfortunately, this only earned him another strike on the nose. "_Ow!_"

"That's what you get for seeing me without my helmet on. If home hears about this, it won't be pleasant to say the least." Cass muttered to herself, her helmet totally gone.

"The hell's the problem, is it the color?" Ezreal asked with both hands over his nose, figuring it wouldn't be the length since hers was only a stone's-throw away from Katarina's in that regard.

"Yeah, it's considered unnatural. Unfortunately, ever since I was cursed, no amount of effort to change it has worked. I even tried pouring a vat of ink on it once, all that did was stain the rest of me with ink when it slid right off my hair." Cass explained, just as puzzled about it as Ezreal was, and she even experienced it. Finding a tattered hood and cloak hanging on one of the shop's walls, Ezreal grabbed it and tossed it to her.

"Well, put this on if it helps, it looks like your fancy helmet's long-gone." Ezreal offered, taking a seat on his knees next to Cassiopeia after. Facing out towards the window, Ezreal peeked out, thankful that the shop had a good view on the fight against Rek'Sai. Currently, Rek'Sai was staying above ground, one of her legs speared through the back of a downed Malfested as she walked right over it. Swinging an open-handed upward swing at one of the Noxian soldiers, Rek'Sai sent the man right off his feet, helpless as she dove into the sand, diving right through him to take him down too in the process. Re-emerging shortly after with the Noxian eerily not present, Rek'Sai leapt forward with both fists clenched, crushing one of the remaining Malfested right into the floor before whipping to her left to swipe at another Noxian. Running at him before he could get up, Rek'Sai snatched the Noxian up in his hand, biting his head right off like it was the tip-end of a measly snack. Dropping the rest of the man's body, Rek'Sai looked around at her surroundings, sniffing and sinking her feet into the sand to feel for any vibrations due to her lack of actual sight. Sensing nothing since Cass and Ezreal were on a stone floor, Rek'Sai let out one last howling shriek before turning and leaping into the sand, her back-fin being the only visible part as she sped off into the distance.

"Alright, that thing's gone. Unfortunately, so are all your guards. Uplifting all this sand would've been hard enough with all of them and us, but with just us, I don't see it happening." Ezreal noted, looking at the visceral scene of destruction Rek'Sai left behind, the Malfested having been exterminated with oddly strong prejudice.

"Dammit. I came into this desert and became what I am now looking for Soul Edge's hilt, now this is the second time I get sidewinded by an unfortunate event and left empty-handed. And this time, I don't think I'll be able to go back." Cass lamented, knowing that the only reason she survived last time is because her previous efforts were a blind swing. Now that she had guards, a professional treasure hunter, and a map of where to try, she wouldn't have an excuse.

"You know, this might not be one of my smarter moves since you've indirectly threatened to kill me a couple times, but if you want, you can come back with me to Piltover. I think some of the historians there would love to fund an expedition to get Soul Edge's hilt and put it in a museum, so we'd be able to come back out here with help. Not so sure if you'd get away with stealing it and running back to Noxus, but at least this way you have a higher chance of living." Ezreal reasoned, trying to be Cass's friend without outright just giving her a fabled piece of a demonic sword.

"So long as you don't turn me in to Noxus for the expected bounty they'll be placing when they learn of this, we have a deal." Cass agreed, shaking hands with Ezreal before putting the tattered cloak on and pulling up the hood.

_Later, at a tavern in Kurzwind Siedlung, Germany…_

Filled with all manner of broken and depressed peasants, mercenaries, and soldiers, the Tragen Knallharte Becher (Bear-Fisted Mug) tavern was alight with conversation, one small part of which caught a young soldier's ears.

"Any of you heard the tale of the Red Legion?" A paying customer asked his fellow bar-sat drinkers, sounding like he's had a few himself.

"What is this, some Wolfkrone horror story?" Siegfried, a young mercenary trying to drown his sins in alcohol, rebuked at how preposterous the tale's title sounded. Plenty of the fellow tavern-goers laughing at this remark, the story-teller only sneered slightly.

"Worse. Nobody really knows what they are, legends say they're a mysterious group of female warriors, but not any average woman you or me have seen. Word is they've got feet like horses, and the horns of a goat protruding from their helmets. According to the legends they tower over your average man, usually around 6 feet tall. There's only a handful of them, but that's all they need." The story-teller ominously explained, trying to reel everybody in. "People have reported seein' these harpies on the battlefield, no rhyme or reason as to why or when. Only thing that seems to stick is they hate the Malfested, they always turn to attack those savage beasts when the two happen to be near each other. They show up, they kill, and they leave. Plain and simple. Aside from dragging away a few random bodies, they don't really seem to care too much about the fights they get into."

"So, this…..Red Legion, they seem to hate the Malfested? Like Nightmare?" Siegfried inquired, wondering if he wasn't the only one used by Soul Edge's power at some point.

"Exactly, they were actually seen fighting back the Azure Knight once. They gladly kill humans too, but if you hate the Malfested, it doesn't seem like you have anything to fear from them. Most people who've seen them think they're some kind of demons, bound to the earth by a curse of some sort. Judging by the armor they wear, others think they're warrior Oni that have gotten a slight taste for European armor and weapons as well. As if things were just starting to get easy, some of them have Chinese writing imprinted on their armor, and their logo seems to be that of a rising Phoenix. Seems like even demons can get multi-cultural."

"What do they usually look like, aside from the horns and horse feet?" Siegfried asked, almost finding it hard to believe he was buying into this. Something about opposing Nightmare was drawing him in, especially since they could make good allies for putting the great monstrosity down.

"Nobody really knows much, they've never been seen without their helmets on. Their calling cards are their matching helmets, black and red trim with a snake motif rising up off the back, and that all their armor's black and red, nothing else. Their skin varies from pale as the snow to black as night, and I don't mean Africans: I mean darker than the souls of the Malfested they kill. Even their weapons aren't standard, each one seems to have a wildly different style, almost like they hand-picked some of the world's greatest warriors to mimic for their own purposes." The man elaborated, his grand story being interrupted by a new arrival storming in from outside.

"Malfested! Malfested are here and being killed by some unknown assailant!" The new arrival yelled to the entire tavern, more as a 'come watch the fun' statement than a 'grab your swords and fight' statement. Siegfried being one of the first out the door, the young knight was stopped in his tracks not far out the door by what he saw.

_Is that…a member of the Red Legion?_

Watching the giant fighter, easily standing a good 6'2", nimbly pole-vault over the heads of the Malfested she fought, Siegfried looked for the tells: A closed-face black helmet with red trim lines and a curved tail-like piece rising up off the back akin to a serpent, a black chest-piece adorned with a fur collar and black, fur-rimmed shoulder pads layered over an open trench coat made up the majority of her appearance. Below that, Siegfried could hardly tell what was cloth and what was skin as he caught a glimpse of the creature's midnight black skin, the light from the torches and the moon almost falling into it like a bottomless pit. From right around the knee down, the being's legs changed dramatically, bending in a weird way to become double-jointed, thickly coated in fur, and ending in what were undeniably horse-hooves. Protruding from the creature's helmet were two pairs of horns, one a set of goat-like horns near the back of the head while the other was a pair of more forward-pointing horns, easily capable of impaling someone.

Wielding a black-handled Halberd with a red blade, the mysterious being pivoted on one foot, doing a 180 spin while clutching her Halberd with both hands to decapitate a Malfested that was running in close. Placing one hand on the Malfested's neck-stump, the Red Legion member leapt up, using the dead Malfested as a stand to flip over before kicking the dead body into its allies. Taking advantage of their distraction, the Halberd-wielding demon ran right for the closest of the Malfested, swinging her Halberd directly up and splitting the abomination's front side open. With that one down, the Red Legion member swung her Halberd over her head, twirling it a full 360 degrees as it slammed into another Malfested's shoulder. Kicking this Malfested in the chest to dislodge her blade, the force of the blow actually sent the Malfested careening back a good 5 feet and through a wooden wall, demonstrating that this monster's strength was no laughing matter. Not even needing her Halberd for this next one, the Red Legion member merely snatched up the next Malfested within reach by the throat with her free hand, crushing its windpipe shortly thereafter. Dropping the mangled excuse of a human being's dead body, her work seemed to be done, as the Malfested hadn't sent many on this attack. Slowly walking towards the tavern, the giant demonic creature stopped in the middle of the dirt road, only to crouch for some reason. About to speak up, Siegfried was silenced as, in a single leap, the creature leapt clear onto the roof of the tavern.

Running out into the middle of the road, Siegfried looked up at the roof of the tavern, seeing the strange half-human monster standing there, looking down at him with the moon behind it from his angle.

"Perhaps we'll meet again, Siegfried." The demon spoke to him, somehow calling him by name. What struck him even more was that, despite looking nothing like a Malfested, the woman's voice was dark, heavily flanged, and heavily distorted, almost like someone who'd been wielding Soul Edge for a while. _Definitely not human._

Almost wanting to draw his sword, Siegfried instead locked up as the Red Legion member rose back to full height and turned away, the coat-tails of her trench coat whipping from the sudden action as she turned and darted away off the back of the roof. Running as fast as he could to the back of the tavern, Siegfried hoped to intercept the demon for some answers, only to arrive and find nothing but the sound of wind rustling the tall grass in front of him. If she was out there, the night was masking her escape. Dropping to his knees, Siegfried had more questions than answers:

_Who, or what, was that thing, and how did it know my name?_

Post-Chapter Note

Hope this didn't take too painfully long (I'm genuinely surprised anyone found this story as fast as they did, I was expecting it to wind up like my MK/KI one is right now: Dead. Certainly _quite _happy that isn't the case, without a doubt.

Big things I wanted to touch on with this one is if my depiction of Zed's fighting abilities was good or meh, I tried to have a really well-planned out, elaborate fight between him and that second Malfested Master that showed what he can truly do without getting cluttered and confusing at the same time. That and how this Cass/Ezreal dynamic seems to anyone reviewing so far, because the intention right now is to have them sticking together.

Second, any opinions on the Red Legion so far? They're my attempt to take a series of SCV Create-A-Fighters and make them into something with actual lore, background, and individual character that will be explored further as the story goes on. If anybody's interested in re-creating the one shown in this chapter, just PM me and I'll send back the info (Not putting it here to avoid cluttering up the page for people who don't care). I hate to kinda short-sell Siegfried on his debut chapter, but I promise that won't always be the case, as he's quite central to plenty of the story's larger events. For the next chapter, I've already settled on having Ivy, Zyra, Hilde, and Nightmare, but any other suggestions? I was also tempted to throw in Mitsurugi and Yasuo, but I was debating whether that should be next chapter or the chapter after.

Finally, any feedback on Zed's motives would be greatly appreciated, since I thought it makes sense while avoiding the stereotypical "Bad guy = totally wants Soul Edge to wield" stereotypical easy-route. Being he hates restraints, technically Soul Edge restrains you, it just eats your free will away and restrains you into being its puppet. Oh, and about the place Siegfried's section of the chapter takes place, it's a fictitious town I came up with for the sake of this story since it was proving nigh-impossible to find out what the names and general design of German villages or towns in the 15th-16th Century were like. I figure with the presence of original elements like Wolfkrone, as well as entire additional landmasses that this story is adding, what's the worst a small fictitious town or two could do?


End file.
